Unfortunately, the advice given by Johnson Fu Insurance Agency Inc. appears incorrect. I wish the individual asking the original question got proper advice from a tax accountant with experience. In general, a non-resident of Canada can maintain RRSP without any tax consequences. In other word, any income accrued in RRSP is not taxable to a non-resident individual until he/she is reaches legal age to withdraw RRSP. If an individual withdraws RRSP while Canadian resident, there is immediate 10% withholding tax. Amount of RRSP withdrawal is then added to other source of income, such as employment income and investment income, etc.; usually 10% withholding tax on RRSP withdrawal is not sufficient as this additional income is taxed at the individual's top marginal tax rate. If an individual withdraws RRSP while non-resident, 25% withholding tax applies. J.F. Insurance's advise is correct only if the withdrawal represents substantially all (i.e., 90% or more) of individual's "worldwide" income and therefore, qualifies for S217 election under the Canadian Income Tax Act. Please ask tax professional if you are looking for proper tax advice.